


A Gambling Lesson

by My_Alter_Ego



Category: White Collar
Genre: Gen, games of chance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-11-19
Packaged: 2021-03-10 07:28:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27629546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My_Alter_Ego/pseuds/My_Alter_Ego
Summary: Neal goads his handler by relating all the games of chance he had mastered around the world, even while being pursued by Peter. And, of course, now Neal has his own endgame in mind.
Relationships: Peter Burke & Neal Caffrey
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	A Gambling Lesson

“I’m impressed, Buddy,” Peter told his CI after Neal had managed to adeptly engage Lao Shin in a game of Pai Gow to whet the dangerous criminal’s interest. “Where did you pick up that Chinese domino game?”

“Macau,” Neal replied offhandedly, as if that was just another day at the office for him. “But actually, Peter, the origin of Pai Gow began here in the States in 1985 when a guy named Sam Torosian created it. Now, mahjong is a completely different story. That dates back to the Quin dynasty and is played in gambling parlors all over the People’s Republic, even though there has been a crackdown recently on the beloved national pastime.”

“I’m probably going to regret asking this, but where did you learn to play Baccarat—France?” was Peter’s next question.

“Why, Monte Carlo, of course,” Neal casually replied.

“Of course,” Peter repeated the words as he rolled his eyes.

Neal didn’t miss the gesture, so that compelled him to continue his irritating lecture. “But again, there is a misconception about that game of chance. Baccarat was actually conceived in Italy in the 1400s. The more recent French version of it is something called Chemin de Fer, if you want to get technical.”

“You are just a wellspring of information, Buddy,” Peter said sarcastically. “I’ll bet you’ve visited all of the seven continents of the world, at one time or another, just to check out the gambling.”

Neal shrugged. “Well, maybe not just the gambling—allegedly,” he quickly added. “But to truthfully answer your question, I have never set foot on frozen Antarctica. I mean, what would you use as chips—ice cubes?”

“Just the same, before I put an end to it, you were skipping across the world like a grasshopper on steroids,” Peter grumbled.

“It was fun, and maybe you should think about getting out more to expand your horizons,” the young con man teased.

“I got out plenty chasing you around the globe, thank you very much,” the FBI Agent growled.

“But you never stopped to smell the roses, Peter. Remember, all work and no play makes a G-man dull and uninteresting. Maybe next time, I could show you the highlights,” Neal grinned.

“There’s not going to be a next time, Neal. It’s just so not happening!” Peter snorted.

“We’ll see,” Neal thought to himself.


End file.
